Send me email updates about messages I've received on the site and the latest news from The CafeMom Team.
By signing up, you certify that you are female and accept the Terms of Service and have read the
Privacy Policy.

Can't bring myself to buy maternity clothes. Any advice?

I am 19+ weeks pregnant & I didn’t wear pants in over 3 months now. So I guess it’s time to give in & start shopping for maternity clothes. I know, it’s crazy I’ve been waiting this long, but, it’s soooo expensive and I’m sorry but there is NO WAY I’m shopping at Motherhood. Polyester everything? Are you kidding me? Help please!

What I have been doing is shopping at my regular stores for bigger sizes. I shop at metro, hot topic, and torrid for trendy clothes that have enough length and give to fit me as I grow. I search garage sales for cute maternity stuff, so that I am not spending too much on clothes that won't even last a year, and I got a belly band, so I can wear my pre pregnancy pants without buttoning them. Also, I found that accesories make a world of difference! I just picked up a badass hat that makes me feel cute weather I'm dressed up or in my pajamas, lol!

I don't know about the other moms here, but I just don't really "fit" the typical mommy/maternity style..

Hi there - I like the other responder didn't find stylish clothes until I went to instylematernity.com. It's nice to not have to wear big mumu's when you're pregnant, I was happy to find some cute tops and bottoms that I can wear throughout the pregnancy. good luck!

I would check forever21. They have cute, flowy tops that are cheap. I don't want to spend a lot of money on maternity clothes that I will hate later and only wear for a few months so while I can, I am buying tops that are cute and I can still wear postpartum.

I fought buying maternity clothes for the longest time for the same reasons. I finally had to give in around 18 weeks because I was starting to look a little silly and overstretched in normal clothes. I'm almost 7 months now, and I'm really digging the maternity stuff - it's a lot more comfortable to wear things that actually cater to your changing (growing) body, rather than stuff that feels like it's attacking you. I'm a fan of A Pea in the Pod, and I built myself a basic wardrobe from there with a lot of things that could be mixed/matched to avoid spending thousands. Yes, you're going to drop some cash the first time out, but make sure you're buying things that are versatile, and it won't hurt so much when you realize how much wear you'll get out of them. A word of advice: if in doubt, buy the bigger size. Even if you're not putting on tons of weight, you'll outgrow the smaller one within a couple of months, and you'll be p***ed off that you wasted the money. I dropped over $150 on a great pair of black pants that I wore exactly twice - they no longer fit when I'd gained a mere 3 or 4 pounds. I blame the spreading hips...

As long as you can still fit your pants on your legs, there's no need to buy maternity. I use a hair-tie through the button hole and wrapped around the button to keep them closed. It's almost the exact same as maternity pants, only cuter! As long as you have a shirt thats long enough to cover your button you are GOOD TO GO! And your ass will look good too (cause you get to wear the pants that you only bought cause they made your butt look good in the first place) :)

Here's what I did for my last pregnancy and this one. First off, pants: to maximize your time in regular pants and shorts, loop a rubber band through the button hole and hook it on the button. The more room you need the bigger the rubber band. Also, if you buy jeans you can go longer in regular pants if you get low cut and do the rubber band trick. I'm 25 weeks and just now bringing out my maternity bottoms. For tops I cruise sale racks and thrift stores. Yard sales and Craig's List are also great. I can't bring myself to pay $40+ on a shirt I'll wear for a couple months. Most of my tops are actually regular shirts, too. I just get a little bigger of a size and always stick to the clearance racks. I rarely pay over $10 for a top and I have just as, if not more so, stylish of a maternity wardrobe than those I know who went to the maternity stores. The nice thing about getting mostly non-maternity is that you can use it after the baby without it having that maternity look to it. Maternity shirts tend to have a "pouch" sewn in but loose and empire waisted shirts adjust to your belly. Luckily the styles now are much more belly friendly, but I must say I get odd looks when I walk into stores like Forever 21 and Maurices! I always feel like the maternity clothes in a lot of stores makes me look "motherly" and, while love being a mom, I don't want to look like one! I'm only 23 and would like to look that way! Good luck!

5 months + after I have had my baby girl I am very happy I purchased some nice maternity clothes! Because you know what – you DON’T lose all the baby weight right away and you are NOT going to be stuck home all day after the birth. And it’s so important AFTER to feel good about yourself!

Also, if you can, I’d get tops & dresses that are for nursing too if you plan on breastfeeding, because that’ll cost you too unless you plan ahead.

I shopped at http://www.pettelmaternity.com/ and got a couple pair of pants, skirts and like 5 tops. Also the belly band was helpful to add to my wardrobe. I have to say this – you could be in these clothes for around a year, give or take. Some you can even ware when you’re back to your pre-prego size!!!

5 months + after I have had my baby girl I am very happy I purchased some nice maternity clothes! Because you know what – you DON’T lose all the baby weight right away and you are NOT going to be stuck home all day after the birth. And it’s so important AFTER to feel good about yourself!

Also, if you can, I’d get tops & dresses that are for nursing too if you plan on breastfeeding, because that’ll cost you too unless you plan ahead.

I shopped at http://www.pettelmaternity.com/ and got a couple pair of pants, skirts and like 5 tops. Also the belly band was helpful to add to my wardrobe. I have to say this – you could be in these clothes for around a year, give or take. Some you can even ware when you’re back to your pre-prego size!!!

Yes! If you plan on nursing consider how feasible it will be to nurse in at least some of your tops so that when you're out you don't have to strip. My last pregnancy I got a couple of great products from target. One is a nursing bra that looks like a sports bra. It was seriously one of my best friends! Comfy and it worked great. The other is a tank top that has hooks where the straps attach so you can fold that part down and nurse. I loved both of those so much I went back and got a couple more of each! They came in white, black, and grey so I was able to have a variety depending on what I was wearing and the tank tops were discreet enough to wear around the house and such without worrying about covering up if someone came over. They also were pretty cheap so I wasn't out much when buying multiples.

Thanks for posting this site, they have some very nice stuff!!! I got most my maternity cloths from Old Navy and to be honest...i didn't feel so cute in them. what can i say, I love fashion and well made garments so i just felt very blah in them. At least i can refer my 20 week prego friend that's starting to freak out about her wardrobe. LOL

Quoting StyleMamma:

5 months + after I have had my baby girl I am very happy I purchased some nice maternity clothes! Because you know what – you DON’T lose all the baby weight right away and you are NOT going to be stuck home all day after the birth. And it’s so important AFTER to feel good about yourself!

Also, if you can, I’d get tops & dresses that are for nursing too if you plan on breastfeeding, because that’ll cost you too unless you plan ahead.

I shopped at http://www.pettelmaternity.com/ and got a couple pair of pants, skirts and like 5 tops. Also the belly band was helpful to add to my wardrobe. I have to say this – you could be in these clothes for around a year, give or take. Some you can even ware when you’re back to your pre-prego size!!!

You have to try instylematernity.com. Little polyester, cute styles, a great return policy and cheap prices. Don't spend all your $$ on clothes you'll only be wearing for a few more months! Save your $$ for diapers. Right now, they're also giving an additional 10% off for new customers, so there's no reason not to try them out! You'll thank me!

Send me email updates about messages I've received on the site and the latest news from The CafeMom Team.
By signing up, you certify that you are female and accept the Terms of Service and have read the
Privacy Policy.